Author: rb809rb

Shailene Woodley is reflecting on the time her “dream” role as Mary Jane Watson was cut from The Amazing Spider-Man 2.

Speaking with the SAG-AFTRA Foundation’s Conversations recently, Woodley shared her reaction to learning that her scenes with Andrew Garfield, who starred as Peter Parker/Spider-Man, had been cut from the final film. The actress said she didn’t find out until about a year after she had finished filming the scenes for the Sony Pictures movie, which was released in theaters in May 2014.

“That was a fun phone call,” she joked.

“I was cast as Mary Jane for Spider-Man, which was my dream. Oh my god, Spider-Man’s my favorite superhero; Mary Jane was my favorite character growing up. So, when I got it, I was like, ‘This is so exciting!’”

The Big Little Lies star continued, “We filmed like three scenes together, me and Andrew Garfield. And then, like a year later, they were like, ‘So, you’re not in the movie anymore.’ And I was like, ‘What? What do you mean?’ And they’re like, ‘We’ve introduced a lot of new characters in this last one, and we’re going to wait for whatever happens between [Emma Stone] and Andrew [Garfield].’”

Woodley said she was told the filmmakers planned to introduce Mary Jane after Peter’s relationship with Gwen Stacy, played by Stone, came to an end.

“They were like, ‘Let’s wait for her to die, and then we’ll introduce Mary Jane.’ Which made sense, but then they didn’t make that film. So, there was no reintroduction,” Woodley said. “That’s what I was told, but again, who knows what the truth is? I could have been terrible, and they were like, ‘We can’t do this.’”

The Hollywood Reporter reported in 2013 that Woodley’s scenes had been cut from the film. At the time, director Marc Webb said the decision was made to streamline the story and focus on Peter and Gwen’s relationship.

“Shailene is an incredibly talented actress, and while we only shot a few scenes with Mary Jane, we all love working with her,” Webb said.

Mary Jane had previously been established as Peter Parker’s main love interest in Sam Raimi’s original Spider-Man trilogy, with Kirsten Dunst playing the character opposite Tobey Maguire. Garfield’s iteration of the franchise instead centered on Peter’s relationship with Gwen Stacy, played by Stone. Bryce Dallas Howard also appeared as Gwen in 2007’s Spider-Man 3.

Sony ultimately shelved plans for a third Amazing Spider-Man movie following the release of The Amazing Spider-Man 2, which underperformed compared with expectations. Garfield, meanwhile, eventually returned as Spider-Man alongside Maguire in 2021’s Spider-Man: No Way Home.

Garfield has previously described returning to the franchise as “really healing” and has teased that he would be open to reprising Spider-Man “if it was the right thing.”

Anne Hathaway has joined Tom Cruise for the Days of Thunder sequel, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed. Paramount has set a June 2, 2028, release date for the follow-up to the 1990 movie, which will also be filmed for Imax and released in theaters in Dolby Cinema, 4DX and premium large formats.

Cruise will return as NASCAR driver Cole Trickle, while Hathaway will play a team owner and engineer. Further plot details are under wraps. The Top Gun star will also produce alongside Jerry Bruckheimer and Tommy Harper.

A script will be penned by Will Staples, with Jonathan Levine set to direct, as THR exclusively reported in July. Staples has previously written video games including Call of Duty 3: Modern Warfare and co-wrote the Michael B. Jordan action movie Without Remorse.

Days of Thunder was a reunion for Cruise with his Top Gun director, Tony Scott, and is considered one of the actor’s most memorable roles. The film followed Cole as he was recruited by a retired racing legend, played by Robert Duvall, to a new NASCAR team. Additional castmembers included Nicole Kidman, Cary Elwes and Randy Quaid.

Cruise’s films, including Top Gun, Top Gun: Maverick, Risky Business, Jerry Maguire, the Mission: Impossible series, have helped make him one of Hollywood’s biggest box office stars, with his films grossing more than $13 billion globally. Next up, he is set to star in Digger, directed by Alejandro G. Iñárritu, which will be released in theaters on Oct. 2.

Hathaway is coming off a packed release schedule, with films such as The Devil Wears Prada 2, The Odyssey and The End of Oak Street debuting this year. The Oscar winner’s next role is in Verity, based on Colleen Hoover’s bestselling novel, which is also set for release on Oct. 2.

Organizers of the Met Gala are reportedly considering changing the date of the 2027 event amid growing backlash over plans to honor John Galliano. 

In July, the Metropolitan Museum of Art announced that Galliano’s work would be spotlighted in the Met’s Costume Institute. This exhibition serves as the centerpiece for the annual Met Gala, an event attended by the most elite of the A-list, with one of the most coveted invites. This would make him the third living designer to receive a solo exhibition at the Met, following Yves Saint Laurent in 1983 and Rei Kawakubo in 2017.

At the time, it was announced that the exhibit would feature all the highs and lows, including his antisemitic rant. Galliano is credited with growing luxury-fashion brand Dior into a global giant. However, he was fired by the company in 2011 after video footage surfaced showing the designer, who was inebriated, making antisemitic remarks in a Paris café. Galliano retreated from public life for two years and was found guilty by a Paris court of public insults based on religion, race and ethnicity. He received a fine and was forced to pay damages and court fees. Galliano met with Jewish leaders and rabbis following the scandal and received blessings from groups like the Anti-Defamation League.

The exhibit is scheduled to kick off May 3 with the Met Gala, which is overseen by Anna Wintour, Vogue’s global editorial director who also serves as a Met trustee. However, a growing number of voices are criticizing the plan to honor Galliano. According to The New York Times, criticism has grown stronger.

“In recent days, opposition to the museum’s plan to honor Galliano has grown among Jewish leaders in New York and beyond,” The Times reported. “Donors have contacted Met executives and threatened to rescind gifts to the museum if the exhibition moves forward as planned.”

As a result, Met trustees and board members “have been scrambling to do damage control,” The Times reported. This includes possibly moving the date of the Met Gala, which is always held the first Monday in May, to the following week. The current date of May 3 also happens to be Yom HaShoah, also known as Holocaust and Heroism Remembrance Day, The Times noted.

Last week, New York City Council speaker Julie Menin posted a letter to Wintour, Costume Institute curator Andrew Bolton and Met director Max Hollein, saying the decision to honor Galliano was “a serious mistake.” While noting that his influence in the fashion world has been “enormous” and “unquestionable,” Menin added that she had “deep concern” about the decision to honor Galliano.

“Mr. Galliano’s long public record of antisemitism, racism and anti-Asian bigotry is deeply troubling,” Menin wrote. “His conduct was repeated and significant. He was criminally convicted in France for racist and antisemitic public insults. He was also captured on video praising Adolf Hitler and telling others that their ancestors would have been ‘gassed.’ That is not behavior that should be easily overlooked or normalized. Recently, there were reports of a similar antisemitic incident that allegedly occurred in 2019.

“At a time when our city is confronting a serious rise in antisemitism, anti-Asian hate, and other forms of hatred, I find the decision to so prominently honor someone who has engaged in this behavior to be wholly inappropriate. New York City is one of the most diverse cities in the world.”

Menin added that she was “deeply concerned about the process through which this decision was made. Mr. Galliano’s rhetoric and conduct, including the alleged 2019 incident, should have been more thoroughly investigated.” She urged organizers to “reconsider” their decision and suggested other ways Galliano could be honored, including a “contextual exhibit or educational program.”

“The Met is one of New York City’s most treasured and visible cultural institutions. Its choices carry enormous weight, both here and around the world,” she continued. “I believe this choice falls short of the standard New Yorkers should expect from it.”